Najeeb, a resident of Mahi-Mandavi Hostel and a first-year student of MSc in Biotechnology, disappeared into thin air as some of us are made to believe today. He has disappeared from the premises of a central university that is located close to the Central Bureau of Intelligence. Jawaharlal Nehru University is an exceptional university, as it provides a unique infrastructure to both, the ideas and the academics along with an environment of debate, discussion, and dissent. The university is known for its active student’s politics; it became a ‘hotbed of politics’ eventually after getting highlighted in the news post the infamous incident of February 2016.
Subsequently, a #ShutdownJNU campaign was run by a handful of people targeting the progressive nature and ethos that this university stands for. Bizarre as it would sound, the politicians were spending their energy in counting condoms inside the campus.
The administration to our surprise did not issue any statement in the interest of students, while there was public maligning of the students as well as the status of the university at both national and international level. The women of this campus in a strategic manner became the central target; their character was a matter of debate out in the public that led to abuse and harassment. Besides, students at random were asked to vacate the rented apartments. Anybody seen with a JNU logo on their t-shirt was mocked.
The replacement of Gender Sensitisation Committee against Sexual Harassment (GSCASH) with Internal Complaints Committee on September 18, 2017 is another concern. The flaws lie in the manner it was constituted in – a hasty, autocratic, and unconstitutional manner. Also, in one of the cases, the committee leaked information to the media breaching the confidentiality of the complainant.
In more than one case, we have seen the violation of principles of gender justice by the ICC. In the cases of ‘false complaints’ (as per the findings of ICC), it has recommended strict punishments for complainants suggesting their complete debarment from the university premises. However, in a case where eight female students have filed a complaint of sexual harassment against a professor, the ICC failed to issue any statements in favour of the complainants or to do anything to ensure their safety or to create a stress-free work environment for many female students.
Meanwhile, JNU in the 278th Executive Council meeting, allowed the accused to return to campus despite students protests that include access to his room, laboratory and delegation of teaching responsibilities are permitted. We are also witnessing the fact that the students have shown the reluctance to register the complaints of sexual harassment in ICC. They instead prefer to approach ex-GSCASH student representatives, and hence, we can say such remains the credibility of GSCASH amongst the students even after it is dysfunctional.
Moreover, JNU is so significant to the matters of national politics that the ruling party could not ignore it during the campaign of recent Lok Sabha elections. Kanhaiya Kumar went on to contest a seat from Bihar’s Begusarai while media blurred the lines between ‘nationalism’ and ‘freedom of speech and expression’ for the public. (He was arrested in 2016 on the charges of sedition. However, the charges have not yet been proved, and no evidence has been produced of him shouting ‘anti-national’ slogans at the university.)
JNU became the ‘spectacle’ and nationalism the irony for a secular nation like India that has contributed to numerous cases of mob lynching in the past few years. The “Bharat Mata ki jai” and “Jai Shree Ram” are anyway the new normative, that if you don’t follow – I am sorry; but recent incidents reflect a picture that the chances are of you being either lynched or “go to Pakistan.”
Our prime minister speaking on the recent Jharkhand lynching in the Parliament said, “a state should not be insulted for a crime done by few culprits.” The statement becomes illogical as it juxtaposes how on certain times we brand Muslims as “terrorists,” JNU as “anti-national” and Pakistan as “a rehabilitation centre for those who do not agree to the mainstream politics of the ruling party.”
Well, in Najeeb’s case, the highest investigative agency of the nation, Central Bureau of Intelligence (CBI) has moved to file its closure report. To remind ourselves, he is missing for three years now since October 15 2016 under ‘suspicious circumstances.’ The unravelling of these ‘suspicious circumstances’ is what is in process till date.
Najeeb Ahmed, as the name suggests, belongs to a particular religious community. It is not necessary to point out his religious identity, but we must wonder if that has made all the difference in terms of how our society has perceived him and his disappearance. Alternatively, the banality of evil does not bother us anymore. A sobbing mother continues to fight for justice hoping to find traces of her ‘missing’ son or perhaps imagining, instead of reconstructing the events of that fateful night.
I often wonder and while thinking, get goosebumps asking myself the reasons for the disappearance of a first-year student at the university? For some time, students under the leadership of Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union (JNUSU), carried out numerous protests, rallies, posters, and pamphlets hoping to bring him back, safe and secure. However, with time, the struggle continued, but the issues changed. The case today hangs in the corridors of High Court of Delhi as not much relief has come out yet.
A JNUSU press release after the hearing of the case on March 28 2019, shared that, “CBI has declined to share witness statements of JNU students and call records of Najeeb Ahmed with his mother, Fatima Nafees.” The CBI in its reply for the petition filed before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Patiala House Court argued that “there is no provision in law to provide these documents” and claimed justification saying, And that, “no evidence was found against the students who had assaulted him.”
Meanwhile, Fatima Nafees has also claimed how CBI repeatedly has misled the case. One may not believe, but as we face reality, this is how the national investigative agency has played its role in finding the truth about the missing student. The fact remains hidden in the dark vicinities of the city. In a recent news article, we have come to know that the CBI refused to hand over Najeeb’s call detail records to his mother. It was not considered “relevant” for the victim party but had the relevance and “availability” for the accused. How do we know it is authentic and thus not fabricated or manipulated evidence?
In a significant victory for Fatima Nafees, media outlets (the Times of India Group along with India Today group) were directed to remove all defamatory articles and videos in which they had falsely claimed Najeeb’s links with ISIS. In March 2018, Fatima Nafees had filed a defamation case against two media houses and their reporters for claiming her son had connections with the Islamic State groups. Fatima had shared her relief after these links were taken down but can one pay for the mental as well as emotional damage? Delhi Police in this regard had denied media reports about him browsing information about ISIS “in his laptop before his disappearance” as nothing substantial has been found in the preliminary investigation.
Repeatedly, the headlines linking him with mental disturbance have appeared, but the city police or the investigative agencies pay not much heed to the way his case is being dealt with. The case initially investigated by the Vasant Kunj police station was transferred to the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Delhi Police, and is currently handled by the CBI.
A student who assisted Najeeb during admission assistance recalls, how excited Najeeb was to take admission in this university. If no shreds of evidence exist of any miss-happenings with him, should not we believe, that he has to return safely! As far my memory is concerned of Najeeb, I only recall a mother’s sobbing face on the streets in protest and rallies, in the courtroom while the trial is going on, and at her own house where her eyes are glued looking at the door.
In the current academic year, surprisingly, it took more than a semester for the university to recognise JNUSU as a statutory body. The last year’s JNUSU elections were historic though for its unprecedented violence that created a tense environment and many students had suffered physical injuries. What has further reduced is the one to one relation of students across political organisations. The increasing number of cases of depression and mental anxiety reflects similar concerns.
With the new year of admissions, many of these questions will remain in the pipeline for the student’s movement. Some additional issues shall be the discrepancies in admission policy, the fulfilment of reservation seats, witch-hunting of ‘targeted’ students; imposition of fines and hostel transfers, also building a safe and secure environment for female students.
Note: the author, is an independent blogger and a research scholar at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.